NBA rumors: Raptors insider drops one player mentioned heavily in trade discussions

According to a Raptors insider, Pascal Siakam has been mentioned in trade discussions with other teams. What does this mean for the Raptors?

According to Michael Grange of Sportsnet, the Toronto Raptors have been in trade discussions centered on Pascal Siakam. Grange adds that the Hawks are “still interested” in making a move for the All-NBA player.

After trading for Jakob Poeltl at the trade deadline and ignoring trades for other parts of their core, the Raptors ended up losing in the play-in round of this season’s playoffs. The Hawks themselves are a team in turmoil who seem to have no clear direction.

With Pascal Siakam rumored to be available, what exactly is going on with Raptors?

The Raptors were a squad that was headed toward an offseason where it seemed like the organization was trying to keep on the path that they were on rather than rebuild. After losing Fred VanVleet to the Rockets, they may have finally decided to at least consider trade offers for their players.

At the very least, Toronto will have to start out the season as a team that is trying to contend for the Eastern Conference title. In the event that the Raptors end up performing as a team that can barely get into the top four seeds of the Eastern Conference, it wouldn’t be surprising to see them break up the squad.

With that in mind, it makes a lot of sense for them to check out the trade value of Siakam going forward in case of a situation where they have to trade him mid-season.

With a lot of teams already making most of their moves and having some of their contracts ineligible to be traded due to extensions or altogether new contracts, a deal involving Siakam is unlikely until mid-December when most players become eligible to be dealt. Still, the Raptors are doing the right thing by checking his trade value now.